The Dragon Quest Adventure: Chibi Style
by I.C.2014
Summary: The group meet when they are younger at Savealla Cathedral and they have to work to defeat a murderer not Rhapthorne related.
1. Chapter 1

The Dragon Quest 8 Adventure: Chibi Style

Summery: In my story, I have the group meet - as chibis! Except for Yangus and Trode, but they're younger too and that means Alistair and the abbot is alive. They all meet up at Savella Cathedral when a murder happens and they have to find out who it and defeat them in battle.

Medea:12, Shiro:12, Trode:30, Anglo:12, Marcello:18, Jessica:11, Yangus:30, Alistair:19, Red:28, Abbot Francisco:40

* * *

It was a summer's day in Trodain and King Trode was forced to spend this beautiful day inside the castle, filling out paper work. He finished making the preparations before his guests arrived. Trode was a short man with pale, pasty skin, he had brown hair and small eyes. He was sitting in a chair and was wearing an orange suit with a green cape. A knock came to his door.

"Come in." King Trode said.

The door opened and King Trode's royal advisor, Reynard walk in. "Your majesty, your guests have arrived."

"Assemble the guards. I want us all to be in front of so that we can greet them." Trode got up from the chair he was sitting in and walked out of the room with the advisor.

* * *

"Come on Shiro!" Princess Medea called. She was a young girl with brown hair and green eyes. She was running around in the royal courtyard and a boy with brown hair and brown eyes was running after her. He was wearing the uniform- grey blue shirt and grey pants- that all of the young guards wore.

"I'm coming wait up." Shiro said. They stopped running in front of a huge sakura tree and they sat under it.

"Let's talk." Medea said.

"About what?" Shiro said.

"Tell me, how's your training going." Medea asked. Shiro had just came from the training area for guards.

"Well okay." Shiro blushed. He never was comfortable with being the center of attention. " But I'm still having a hard time with hand to hand combat. It's because I'm small; I don't have as much upper body strength, the captain's teaching me a fighting style that will help me use my speed to give me a good chance in a fight. We shouldn't be talking about me, you should be talking about you."

"There's nothing to talk about." Medea said, exasperated. "That evil woman has been trying to teach me how to be a proper lady."

"You shouldn't talk about Lady Nadine like that." Shiro said.

"Why not? She thinks she's better than anyone who isn't as rich as her because to her those people are garbage. I can't stand people like that. People are still people no matter what." _'She also says these really mean things about Shiro just because of the fact that he didn't remember her past. So what if he didn't remember? So what if he wasn't born from Trodain? It's none of her damn business!'_

"Medea, look." Shiro said, interrupting the girl's thought.

Medea looked. Her father's advisor, Reynard was running towards them.

"Your majesty," Reynard called. "Your father's guests have arrived. We must be there to greet them. And Shiro you need to be there with the other guards so I suggest we go now."

Medea and Shiro got up and they walked with Reynard to the front of the castle. Medea and Reynard stood with the king and Shiro took his place right next to the captain of the guards.

Everyone in Trodain could see a large group of people walked towards them. These people wore a uniform that were mostly blue (some wore it in red), some wore matching capes, most of then wore a rosary, all of them had a weapon on their belts whether it was a rapier sword a staff or a bow and arrow and they were being led by a very small, old man with a long beard and long hair covered by a big hat with the sign of the rosary on it.

"Trodain walked up to these people. "Welcome, Abbot Francisco and the Templar knights. I am glad to have you here. Let us show you to your quarters, you must be tired from your journey." Trode turned around to look at the citizens of the kingdom, "We're going to have a banquet with a huge feast, honoring our guests. The guards will come with me."

Shiro and the rest of the guards went followed King Trode, the small man- Abbot Francisco, and the Templar knights into the castle. When they were all inside King Trode turned to them and said: "Guards, I want you to show the Templars to their rooms." Trode then left with the abbot at his side.

The captain then turned to Shiro. "Shiro, I want you to escort the young Templar knights to their rooms."

"Yes sir." Shiro said, while saluted. The captain and all the adults left, leaving the kids. Shiro made sure they were following him. When he started walking, he felt the back his throb. Something had hit him and it hit him with enough force to make him fall.

"Oops." A templar said. He was huge like a giant with small, beady eyes. "You really should make sure you're not around when I'm throwing things."

"Maybe you shouldn't be throwing things." Shiro said, boldly. "Especially not at me."

"What did you say?" The big boy came closer to Shiro until he was in his personal space. His breath smelled like poop. He grabbed the front of Shiro's shirt and he started punching him.

Everyone was just watching. It was obvious that some of these boys were afraid of this bully and others watched with interest, waiting to see how this would end.

"What's the matter?" The boy said, "You were so bold before, aren't you going to do something?" By now, Shiro had a black eye, a blood lip and a lot of bruises on his face. But this boy was still punching Shiro. While this was happening, a boy with long, white hair and blue eyes ran out of the crowd, jumped on the boy's back and held him in a choke hold and he said: "Stop it Greg!"

"Uh!" Gregory dropped Shiro. "Angelo, you better let go of me!" Greg ran backwards and slammed his back on the wall to get rid of the other boy. The other boy, Angelo, had the air knock out of his lungs, it was hard for him to breathing. Angelo let go of Greg when he fell unconscious. Greg turned around to deal with the wimp that he was dealing with earlier but when he turned around he couldn't find him. It was like he was never there. At least it was until Shiro body slammed him from behind.

Shiro had seen what that other boy- Angelo- did for him. Shiro never stood up for himself, he just didn't care. Shiro only did something to help others. After Shiro body slammed Greg, he straddled the other boy and punched him repeatedly. _'I hate people like him. I know it's a bad thing to think but this is very therapeutic, just punching people like this. I wonder though, why did that boy stand up for me? I think he was a Templar knight also, but the other Templar knights did nothing to help me. But why? I just don't understand it.'_ Shiro would've kept hitting Greg, but…

"Shiro get off!" The captain of the guards said, "I said get off soldier!"

Shiro stopped punching Greg (who was now covered in bruises and almost unrecognizable), he had too much respect for the captain to do otherwise.

"Come with me. I want to know exactly what is going on and I know that the King would want to know about this also." Shiro and the captain left the scene, side by side. They had a visit with King Trode.


	2. Chapter 2

When Angelo woke up, he had a lot of questions. _'Where am I? What happened to that kid who was getting beat up? He's not dead is he? Or maybe that kid beat Greg up? Not possible, especially when he was getting the beating of a lifetime!'_ Angelo got up from a bed and was about to walk away.

"You, stop right there!" A woman was standing between Angelo and the door. The woman was taller than Angelo, with blond hair, blue eyes and a nice female figure. Angelo was in love at first sight, again.

"Hello madam. My name is Angelo, what is your name?" Angelo asked the woman. Angelo grabbed her hand and kissed it.

"My name is Jennet." The woman giggled, "I am the physician of Trodain castle."

"Jennet I have a question." Angelo said.

"Then asked it and I will answer to the best of my ability."

"There was a fight between one of the Templar knights and a guard that was about my age." Angelo said slowly, "What happened?"

"I know who you're talking about," Jennet said, "The guard's name is Shiro. From what I heard about that incident, the captain of the guard caught came and saw Shiro assaulting one of the Templars."

"What?" Angelo's eyes widened in surprise, "What will happen to him?"

"Well if the king thinks that Shiro assaulted him without proper cause, then will Shiro likely be flogged for dishonorable conduct." Jennet said.

"But he didn't do anything wrong. Greg's was beating him to a bloody pulp."

"I know." Jennet said, "Shiro is a sweetheart. He would never beat someone up if he didn't think he was helping someone out. But unfortunately, Shiro won't tell anyone else what really happened."

"Why not?" Angelo asked.

"Because, that's the way Shiro is. I swear that boy's too nice for his own good.

"Then Jennet I have to go. You see I saw almost everything that happened." Angelo said, "It's not right for Shiro to get punished for something he didn't do."

"Are you breathing okay?" Jennet asked.

Angelo nodded.

"Then go. They will be in front of the king's throne."

Angelo walked passed Jennet and out the door. He ran as fast as he could.

* * *

Shiro and the captain walked in front of the throne where the king was sitting, discussing something with Abbot Francisco and there was a man standing behind him, he had back hair and green eyes and his name was Marcello, he was the captain of the Templar knights. Medea was also there, sitting on her throne as well. They all stopped what they were doing.

"I apologize for the interruption your majesty," the captain said. "But I caught Shiro, the guard with me, fighting with one of the Templar knights."

King Trode looked at Shiro. "Is this true?"

"... It's true." Shiro said. He was looking down, like the floor was the most fascinating thing in the whole room.

"Do you have anything to say in your defense?" Trode asked.

_'Yeah I have something to say. I didn't do anything wrong and I don't deserve to be standing here.'_ Shiro thought. But instead he said: "No, your highness."

King Trode sighed. "Then I have no choice but to have you flogged in the courtyard in front of everyone that will be watching."

"But Father." Medea got up from her throne, "This is unfair! Anyone who knows Shiro knows that there is know way he would just beat someone up like that."

"Well Medea, there is nothing I can do, unless Shiro wants to change his story before he gets flogged."

"I understand King Trode." Shiro said. The captain was holding onto Shiro's arm and they were about to leave the throne room…

Someone ran into the throne room and was running out of breath. "Wait, stop." The person gasped.

"Templar Angelo." Marcello said, "What is the meaning of this?"

"Angelo," Abbot Francisco said, "is there something you have to say?"

"I'm sorry for the interruption Abbot Francisco, Captain Marcello, your majesty… but I came to tell you about what happened." Angelo said.

"The boy has already admitted to what he did." Marcello said.

"But he didn't do anything," Angelo explained. "Templar Greg started beating him up for no reason and I tried to help hold Greg to get him to stop. But then Greg knocked the wind out of me and I fell unconscious because I couldn't get air back in my lungs. After that, Shiro must've started fighting back."

"Shiro is this true?" The captain of the guards asked.

Shiro nodded his head.

"You should've said something sooner." Marcello sneered. "I will deal with Greg, you are dismissed Templar Angelo.'

"As are you Shiro." The captain said. "And I also apologize for the misunderstanding."

Shiro was about to tell his captain that he didn't have to apologize to him, but Angelo began to pull him out of the room.

When the boys were out of the room, Angelo asked the first thing that came to mind: "What the bloody hell is wrong with you?"

"Huh?" Shiro didn't understand what Angelo was asking.

"Why were you so willing to take the blame," Angelo asked. "Why wouldn't you even hit back at first?"

Shiro really thought about the question. _'I don't know why I'm like that. I just am.'_ "I just don't like fighting and I don't just…"

"Like standing up for yourself?" Angelo asked, skeptically.

"Something like that." Shiro said.

"So what made you decide to start fighting back _after_ I fell unconscious?" Angelo asked.

"I guess because you got hurt after you tried to help me. I usually try to help other people." Shiro said in a matter-a-fact way.

Angelo shook his head from side to side. "You're too nice for your own good." Angelo said, "You one of those goody goodies that do good things for nothing."

The two walked in the hallway and when they reached the first door, Shiro walked into his room and opened a desk drawer. Inside the drawer was a brown mouse with a Mohawk.

"Hi Muchie." Shiro said to the mouse while he took something out of his pocket, "I went into the kitchen today and I managed to get you some cheese." Shiro gave the piece of cheese to the mouse and watched as it began to nibble on it.

Angelo walked right behind Shiro and was wondering who he was talking to, that was until he saw the mouse. "You have a pet mouse?" Angelo asked.

Shiro nodded. "His name is Munchie and I've had him ever since I came to Trodain."

Angelo was interested now. 'You mean you weren't born in Trodain?"

"No. I came here when I was eight and I've been here ever since." Shiro took Munchie out of the drawer and put him inside his pocket. Then he and Angelo walked out of his room and went into the garden.

"How old are you?" Angelo asked suddenly.

"I'm twelve but I'm going to turn 13 in two months." Shiro said.

"Did you know that a mouse only lives for three years?" Angelo asked, "It's a little strange that your mouse Munchie lived for four years and is about to see a fifth year."

_'Really? Maybe Munchie really is a special mouse.' _Shiro mused. "I didn't know. Maybe Munchie is living longer because he's healthier then the average mouse." Shiro sat down under the biggest tree in the garden.

Angelo sat next to him. "Where were you before you came to Trodain?"

Shiro turned his head to face Angelo. "You ask a lot of questions." Shiro pointed out. "I'll answer your questions if you answer mine."

Angelo agreed. "Where were you before you came to Trodain?" Angelo asked again.

"I don't know." Shiro answered. "What made you decide to become a Templar knight?"

Angelo noticed that Shiro didn't answer his question but he let that go, thinking that maybe something bad happened before he came to Trodain. "I didn't really have a choice." Angelo said, "My parents died and I was as orphan. So it was either become a knight or become a monks and being a monk is just to boring for me. So what happened to your parents?"

"I think they died, but I don't know for sure. I don't remember anything that happened before coming to Trodain. So I was wondering, why is it that your captain doesn't really seem to like you?"

Angelo hesitated, but then answered. "The captain, Marcello… he hates me. He's my half brother. I was born an aristocrat and my father had an affair with one of the maids and she had Marcello. If I wasn't born he would've inherited my father's fortune, but when I was born Marcello and his mother were kicked out of the house and they went to Maella Abbey. Then after that, Marcello's mother got sick and she died, ever since then he always hated me."

Shiro felt sorry for asking. Angelo must've known because then he said: "Don't start feeling sorry. It was only a question and you didn't have anything to do with it. So what is it you know or remember about yourself?"

Shiro thought about it. "My name is Shiro and I was eight when I came to Trodain. I started out as a live-in servant but then I moved up and became a guard. I remember the first time I met Medea and everything else that happened in Trodain. But sometimes I do wonder about my past and I don't know if I'm an only child or not."

Shiro and Angelo talked about different things and they became fast friends. When they finished their conversation, Medea was walking towards them with anger written on her face.

"Hi Medea." Shiro said.

"What is wrong with you?" Medea screamed, tears were making lines on her face. "Do you realize that if someone didn't stand up for you that you would've been flogged in front of everybody? What's the matter with you?"

Shiro got up and stood in front of Medea. When he was close enough, he wiped her tears with his hand. "I'm sorry that I made you worry. I'm sorry that I made you cry. There's nothing to worry about anymore." At that moment Medea hugged Shiro, her head resting on his chest, and they both sat down. Medea was on Shiro's lap.

"Medea this is Angelo, Angelo this is Princess Medea." Shiro introduced.

Medea lifted her head up from Shiro's chest and looked at Angelo. "Thank you. If it wasn't for you, then Shiro would've been in big trouble. He's just to nice for his own good."

"Your welcome." Angelo said. The three of them talked about anything that came to mind. When it was sunset, the three got up, walked inside the castle and went separate ways to their bedrooms, where they fell asleep.

* * *

Being flogged means that the person will be whipped. You know, like that movies with Jesus in it, Passion of the Christ.


	3. Chapter 3

Shiro had woken up 30 minutes ago and after taking a bath he got dressed. Today he had to bring his helmet, sword and other weapons because he was going to train with the guards and the Templar knights in the courtyard.

When Shiro was sure that he was ready he checked on his pet mouse Munchie, gave him a piece of cheese and then left the room. Angelo was waiting outside of his room.

"Good morning Shiro," Angelo said.

"Good morning Angelo," Shiro said.

They walked together into the courtyard everyone one who was either a palace guard or a Templar knight was there.

"Hey guys!" A voice said.

Both Angelo and Shiro turned towards the benches and they saw Medea. They waved and went to their proper spots in line.

"Now as you all know this after we're finished training we will be getting onto a ship in Port Prospect and that ship will take us to Savella Cathedral." Captain Tobin of the palace guard said.

"Now to make this interesting Captain Tobin and I decided that instead of doing regular training we will choose one palace guard and one Templar knight to fight each other until there is a clear cut winner." Captain Marcello of the Templar knights said.

"Now I will choose Shiro to represent the palace guards," Captain Tobin said.

"I will choose Greg to represent the Templar knights," Captain Marcello said.

Shiro and Greg walked to the battlefield. When they turned to each other to shake hands Greg grabbed Shiro's hand and pulled him closer.

"You're going to get the beating of a lifetime," Greg whispered so that only Shiro could here him. "You just got off lucky yesterday." After that Greg let go of Shiro's hand and they went to their separate corners.

_'After what happened yesterday he still thinks he can beat me up?'_ Shiro thought.

"Boys you can use any weapon comfortable with." Captain Tobin said.

"You don't even have to use a weapon if you don't want to." Captain Marcello explained, "Use whatever you are comfortable with but make sure it stays a clean fight. Now begin!"

Both boys chose their weapons. Shiro decided to use his iron lance and Greg decided to use his Templar swords. They circle around each other for a while before Greg charged Shiro. At the last moment Shiro dodged. _'I'll have to be very careful. This guy is bigger and has more strength then I do but at least I have speed on my side.'_ Shiro thought. Greg charged again and Shiro moved to the side again, but this time when Greg was close enough to him Shiro hit him with the lance.

Greg was caught off guard and fell. When he got up he swung at Shiro three times. The first time Shiro dodged it, the second time Shiro got hit in the arm and began to bleed and the third attack Shiro had no time to avoid it so used his lance to block the attack. Shiro had a hard time pushing against Greg's strength because his arm was throbbing with hurt and he wasn't sure he could keep this up much longer.

"Don't worry, you can do it Shiro!" Medea cheered, "I know you can. I believe in you!"

"Shiro, show that bully what you're made of!" Angelo exclaimed.

Other guards and a few knights cheered Shiro on and that gave Shiro the strength to push Greg, a boy who was twice his size, away from him. They both tried so hard to hit each other, their weapons made a metal clashing sound when they were hit together. After a few minutes one weapon was hit out of a boy's hand.

That weapon was a sword.

"Enough!" Captain Tobin said. The Captain walked up to the boys and held up one of Shiro's arms. "The winner of this match is Shiro of the palace guards!"

"Alright!" Angelo exclaimed. A group of the guards came and raised Shiro onto their shoulders. When they finally put him down Angle gave him a pat on the shoulder and Medea got up from the bench and hugged him so hard.

"You did it Shiro," Angelo said. "But I want you to remember that Greg will try to make your life a living hell because of this. No one's every really beaten him in a match before."

"He can try." Shiro shrugged his shoulders, "There isn't that much he can do to me without getting himself in trouble."

"Alright time to have some breakfast," Captain Marcello said. "Then after that we will leave on our journey."

Everyone that was on the field went back inside of the castle and into the dining hall. It was magnificent; there were three different tables with enough chairs for a hundred people to sit in, King Trode and Abbot Francisco were already sitting at one of the table. Medea walked over to their table and sat next to her father. What was more beautiful then the room and is furniture was all the food that was on the table. The guards and the knights stood behind their seats.

"Now," Marcello said. "Let us pray to the goddess for everything she has blessed. We give thanks for our good health and good fortune and we hope that we are always this blessed, amen."

"Amen." Everyone said. After they finished praying they all sat in their seats and dug in. It didn't seem to matter if the knights and the guards sat in separate places so Shiro and Angelo sat together. They both ate until they were sure that their stomachs were going to explode.

When breakfast was over all of the warriors had to report back to the courtyard.

"Now listen carefully because I will not repeat myself." Tobin said, "As another test of your skill all of you will be traveling to Port Prospect as a team of two. These teams of two will consist of one palace guard and one Templar knight."

"The first team of two that makes it to the ship first will get a prize that will stay a surprise," Marcello said. "Captain Tobin and I will be escorting Abbot Francisco, King Trode and Princess Medea. Don't worry; you have a better chance of winning."

A few of people did laugh at that

"Remember this." Tobin said, "This is a test of teamwork so you should pick someone you think can be trusted with your life. Besides, there is also the chance that you might run into a monster and have no choice but to fight it."

After the both the captains were done talking, the palace guards and the Templar knights searched for their partners.

Shiro and Angelo looked at each other. "Want to be my partner?" Shiro asked.

"Sure," Angelo said. "But..."

"Yes?"

"What made you decide to ask me to be your partner?" Angelo asked. He really wanted to know the answer.

"It's because in all the time you have been here you have stood up for me one way or the other," Shiro said. "First when Greg was beating me up and then when I was about to get flogged. Since you're my friend I think I can trust you."

When Shiro said the word "friend" it made Angelo's heart race. _'We're friends? The only friend I've ever has was Abbot Francisco. Don't worry Shiro I'll have your back no matter what.'_

"Come with me to my room for a second?" Shiro asked. "My stuff is already packed but I need to get Munchie. No one else will feed him when I'm gone."

The pair went back inside the castle and into Shiro's room. Shiro opened the drawer he kept Munchie in and put the brown mouse inside his pocket. Shiro also took his razor wing boomerang and his steel broadsword and he put those weapons into his bag. After he was sure that he had everything that he would need, Shiro left his room and he and Angelo went back outside to start their journey.

Once they were outside they saw that the other teams were just crossing the bridge to Farebury. Shiro and Angelo crossed the bridge like the other teams did. The boys walked until they reached a tree with orange and red leaves. They stopped when they saw a bag under the tree.

Shiro picked up the bag. "What do you think we should do with this Angelo?"

Angelo held his chin in his hand. "I think we should take it with us, maybe we'll see someone in town that might own it and then we can give it back." Shiro nodded his head in agreement, put the bag they found in the bag he was carrying and then continued on their way until they saw Farebury, where they decided to stop.

"We should go into town for a while," Angelo said.

"Why?" Shiro asked.

"So that we can buy the items that will help to heal us," Angelo answered. "We have no idea what type of monsters we might run into and we don't want to use up our magic healing ourselves because we don't know when we might see another town or village."

Shiro nodded. _'I knew I made the right decision choosing him.'_ "We should ask for information first then buy the items we might need."

Angelo nodded. "You're right. It would help to know the shortest way to reach the port."

"I know someone who can give us some information. Follow me." Shiro and Angelo walked up the stairs to the higher buildings. When they found the tavern Shiro walked to the building next to it, the one near a well. Shiro and Angelo walked into it and were met by two people. One was a man in his late 40's. He had long, black hair, a black mustache and the other person was a young girl who seemed to be the same age as the two boys. She was long purple hair.

"Father," the girl said. "It is Shiro."

"Ah, Shiro," the man said. "It is good to see you again."

"Hello Kaldarasha and Valentina," Shiro greeted. He turned to Angelo and introduced him. "This is Angelo and Angelo this the famous fortune-teller, Kaldarasha and his daughter Valentina."

"Please to meet you." Valentina said.

Angelo walked up to Valentina and held her hand. "The pleasure is all mine." Angelo held her hand to his lips and kissed it, making Valentina blush.

"So… how can I help you?" Kaldarasha asked.

"We need information," Shiro said. "We would like to know if there's a short cut to Port Prospect."

"… Well." Kaldarasha said, "There isn't really isn't a shortcut to Port Prospect. But there is a shortcut to another town next to Port Prospect. It's called Alexandria."

"Where is the shortcut?" Angelo asked.

"There is a road that leads to a cave called the Waterfall Cave," Valentina answered.

"All you really have to do is walk up there like your about to go inside and then walk around the cave." Kaldarasha said.

"Then you keep walking until you cross a bridge near a tree with orange and red leaves then you will make it to the Southern checkpoint. After that, Alexandria is the first town you'll come across and it should be pretty easy to make it to Port Prospect from there."

"Thank you," Shiro said. "There was also something else I wanted to ask about."

"Yes?" Kaldarasha asked.

"We found a tool bag next to that same tree you mentioned," Angelo began. "Do you know who that could belong to?"

"Yes actually. There is a man who lives on a hill on top of the Waterfall Cave. His hut isn't that hard to see. I'm pretty sure it's his bag."

"Good, Thank you." Angelo said.

"Good Bye." Shiro said. They all waved each other good-bye and both Angelo and Shiro left the fortune-teller's shop.

"Now let's go and buy our supplies," Angelo said. "Then we can take that shortcut.

Angelo and Shiro bought medicinal herb that would heal wounds, cure poison and paralysis. When they felt that they were done shopping they left Farebury and went to the location of the Waterfall Cave.

**Note:**** If my directions on how to get to Alexandria were confusing don't worry. I'm not good at explaining things sometimes.**


	4. Chapter 4

"Looks like we're here," Angelo said.

"We should see if anyone's home," Shiro said. He and Angelo took Kaldarasha's directions; now they were on top of the Waterfall Cave, in front of a small hut, but not without having to fight the monsters in the area. Angelo knocked on the door. After two minutes of waiting nothing happened so he knocked again.

"What!" a voice exclaimed. "Who the hell is bothering me?" A big man with a balled head and a grey beard came and opened the door.

"…,"

"Well? I don't have all day!" the man said. _'Well I do but these kids don't need to know that.'_

"Sir, we found this tool bag that was left under a tree," Shiro said politely. Shiro took out the tool bag. "Does this belong to you?"

The man's eyes widened, shining with gratitude that didn't reach his voice when he spoke. "Yes that is my tool bag," he took a moment before answering. "I'm going to repay you for helping me."

"You don't-," Shiro said.

"Yes I do," the man said. _'I just don't know what to give you.'_ At that moment, Munchie stuck his out of Shiro's pocket and started squeak. At that moment it was like a light bulb came on in the man's head.

"I'll tell you what lad," the man said to Shiro. "I'll give you five pieces of cheese for your mouse." The man took out a bag and gave it to Shiro.

"Thank you," Shiro and Angelo both said. Shiro was about to feed Munchie a piece of cheese.

"Don't do that," the man said, stopping Shiro. "Feed that to your mouse while you're battling monsters, you get a nice surprise."

Angelo looked at the man in confusion. _'What would be the point of doing something like that?'_ "Thank you sir, but really have to go."

"Oh?" the man asked. "Where, may I ask, are you going?"

"We'll be going to Savella Cathedral and we can't be late or we'll miss the ship," Angelo explained. _'And the competition.'_ he silently added to himself.

"Do you boys know about the shortcut?" the man asked.

Both boys nodded.

"Then I suggest you use it," the man said and waved his hand. "Good bye and if you ever find yourselves near my hut, come by." The man went back inside his hut and closed the door behind him.

Shiro looked at Angelo. "Now we have to get a move on," he said, eyes shining anew with determination. "Let's get to Port Prospect as fast as we can." Shiro and Angelo ran down the hill and to the shortcut they heard about.

They reached the Southern Checkpoint in five minutes and they kept walking. At that moment they were caught off guard by monsters; two Slimes, two Candy Cats and one Capsichum (it looks like peepers connected by a skewer). The Slimes attacked first, taking advantage of the boys' surprise. Shiro and Angelo dodged that attack but they weren't as lucky when the Candy Cats attacked next. Both boys got scratched in the face. The Capsichum attacked Angelo.

Shiro used a spell to heal Angelo and Angelo used a Whoosh spell to attack the Slime with. The Slime died instantly. The Capsichum used a Buff spell on itself. The Candy Cats must not have thought of Shiro and Angelo as threats because those cats decided to groom themselves during the battle. Shiro attacked- using his Soldier's Sword- the Capsichum and Angelo also attacked the Capsichum with his bow and arrow. The monster died. One of the Candy Cats jumped and would've attacked Angelo… if not for the fireball that the monster, killing it instantly.

"Where did that come from?" Angelo asked.

"From right here," a voice answered. At that moment, a girl who was around Angelo and Shiro's age, she had red hair in pigtails and red eyes. She was followed by an older boy who looked about sixteen or seventeen years old, he wore armor, sword, shield and he had the same eyes and hair as the girl.

"Are you two alright?" the boy asked.

"We're alright," Shiro said. There was still one monster left. Shiro decided to end this battle by using a Sizzle spell. The fire spell killed the last Candy Cat.

As soon as the monster died Shiro, Angelo and the boy put their weapons away.

"Thank you for helping us," Angelo said to the boy and girl. "My name is Angelo and this is Shiro."

"I'm Jessica and this is my brother, Alistair," Jessica said. "You two are lucky that we came along when we did."

"We are," Angelo said. He walked closer and only stopped when he was standing in front of Jessica. Angelo took Jessica's hand into his own and kissed it. "What can we ever do to repay you?"

Jessica blushed and became as red as a cherry. Alistair was practically fuming. _'What does that boy THINK he is doing with my little sister? Wait…I need to calm down, he's just a boy and I can't fight with EVERY BOY that tries to hit on her.'_

Shiro on the other hand, was oblivious to what was going on. "Angelo we need to hurry," Shiro said. "If we don't move fast, everyone else will get there before us."

"Wait," Alistair ordered. "Just where do you boys think you're going? I know you two are skilled fighters and you can use magic but you could've been overpowered by those monsters. That very dangerous."

Shiro looked at Alistair. "We're trying to get to Port Prospect," Shiro told him. Then he looked back at Angelo. "And then there's still the race.

Angelo's eyes widened. "Oh my- I forgot about the race for a second."

Alistair and Jessica looked at the two boys in confusion. "Race. what race?" Alistair asked. "I think you boys should tell us exactly what's going on and don't leave anything out."

Angelo and Shiro told Jessica and Alistair everything. About when the Templar Knights came to Trodain, about when all of the Templar Captain and the Captain of the Royal Guards decided to turn it into a race to Port Prospect, about how they were planning to get on a ship to Savella Cathedral and they were finishing up the part where the monsters showed up.

"…and that's when you two joined in the fight and helped us," Angelo finished.

Jessica nodded her head in understanding. "Ok," she said. _'I'm so glad that's settled.'_ she thought.

"Why don't my sister and I join you?" Alistair asked. "We're also taking the ship to Savella Cathedral. Would that be alright?"

Both Angelo and Shiro nodded his head. "You can come with us if you want to," he said, "but, we should hurry."

The four companions jogged as quickly as they could first to Alexandria, where Shiro bought a Boomerang and then they continued their journey to Port Prospect.

"Why did you go into town, just to buy a Boomerang?" Jessica asked.

"It'll come in handy when we have to fight more than one monster," Shiro explained.

Alistair nodded his head. "That's good thinking," Alistair said. "Now let's hurry up. When you explained about the race I became very excited now I want to join."

Little did the travelers know, they were being watched. This person has been following Angelo and Shiro he watched when the tow boys first got attacked by the monster. This person planned to walk pasted them and get to Port Prospect while they got defeated by the monsters, but Jessica and Alistair ruined this plan so now this person was seething with anger. This person had wanted to hurt those two boys every since they

"You better hurry up," Greg threatened. Greg turned around to look at the wimp he was partnered with. The other boy was a Royal Guard. He wore his uniform and he was shaking uncontrollably. He wasn't able to stop his shaking and this made Greg angry. Greg punched the boy as hard as he could, making the boy collapse on the floor. "I told you to hurry up!"

"I-I'm s-so-sorry," the other boy said.

"Whatever," Greg said. "Just get up. I don't want to lose them."

The other boy got up and he and Greg continued to follow Shiro and Angelo.

Shiro, Angelo, Jessica and Alistair have been walking on the dirt road that led to Port Prospect.

"How long till we get to the Port?" Jessica asked impatiently.

"Jessica," Alistair said. "You know as well as I do that Port Prospect is a long walk from the Southern Checkpoint."

Jessica pouted her lips, but didn't say anything. The rest of the walk continued in a comfortable silence.

Greg was still watching the four companions, trying to think of a way to get passed them and win the race. He knew, even though he didn't want to admit it, that he couldn't just fight with the group in front of him and hope to win the battle. He needed a plan. Greg scanned the area. When he found the answer to his problems it was like a light bulb went off in his head. Shiro, Angelo, Jessica and Alistair had run into eight monsters. _'This is my chance,'_ thought Greg. _'Not only do I win the race, but I make sure that guard Shiro gets what's coming to him. I'm taking care of two birds with one stone.'_ Greg gave a silent cheer. He and his partner walked past the four warriors and the eight monsters.

"What do we do?" Angelo asked. He shot an arrow, getting one of the monsters in the arm.

"I don't know," Alistair said. Alistair had parried a blow with his sword and had managed to push the monster back. "There are two many of them."

"Everyone, don't you give up," Shiro said. _'There's got to be a way to take care of them,' _Shiro thought. A light bulb went off in his head. _'Wait, what was it that man said before? "Feed that to your mouse while you're battling monsters, you get a nice surprise."'_ Shiro reached his hands into his pockets. He took Munchie out of his right pocket and a piece of cheese out of his left.

"Are you mad?" Jessica asked. "What are you doing? How do you think a mouse is going to help us?"

"Trust him," Angelo said that with more confidence then he felt. "He knows what he's doing." _'At least I __think__ he does.'_

Shiro fed Munchie the cheese. When he was finished the cheese, Munchie blew fire out of his mouth; like a dragon, Munchie killed all of the monsters.

"Aahhhhhh!" screamed some monsters.

"Noooooo! This cannot be!" said other monsters. The monsters all disappeared into a blue light.

Angelo, Alistair, Jessica… even Shiro was speechless.

"…Wow," Jessica said in awe. She looked right at Shiro with her wide eyes. "You really did know what you were doing."

"I'm glad those monsters are gone," Alistair said. "But it's not time to celebrate."

"What do you mean?" Shiro asked. Everyone turned their attention to Alistair in confusion.

"I not sure, but I think I saw two boys walk past us while we were fighting the monsters," Alistair answered. "One boy had on the same uniform as Angelo and another had on a uniform that looked like Shiro's.

"What!" Angelo yelled, his eyes glowing with outrage, mirror the same glow in Shiro's eyes. "Then they should've been helping us! What did these two looks like?"

Alistair described the boys as best as he could. The more he said the angrier Angelo and Shiro got.

"The one in the Templar uniform must've been Greg," Angelo said through grinded teeth.

"The other boy in the guard uniform had a huge bruise on his cheeks," Alistair said.

"The other boy's name is Henry," Shiro said. "He's a nice guy. He's a little shy and he doesn't really cause any trouble. Greg must've bullied him into being his partner."

"Then we need to help him as soon as we get to Port Prospect," Angelo said.

"We need to get to Port Prospect, fast," Jessica said in determination. "We can't let them win."

"That's right," Alistair said. "They can be that far ahead of us. We could still catch up if we hurry."

And with that, the knight, the guard, brother and sister ran as fast as they could to Port Prospect.


	5. Chapter 5

"We'll catch up," Angelo yelled. "And when we do we're going to teach Greg a lesson that he's never going to forget. That is a promise."

"We still need to worry about getting to Port Prospect before they do," Alistair reminded Angelo.

Jessica nodded his head. "That's true," she agreed. "But how exactly are we going to get there before them anyway? They're too far ahead."

Shiro looked at the red-headed sorceress. "Don't give up hope; there may still be away to get passed Greg and Henry. There is a way to make it to Port Prospect, I just know there is."

"Someone please help me!" screamed a voice. "Someone help!"

"Shut up you little wimp!" yelled another voice. The group could here the sound ganging, along with a couple of gasps and coughs, then a terrible scream. The scream was loud enough to scare most of the weaker monsters away and the banging sound just got louder, it kind of sounded like someone was being hit by a weapon.

"You all heard that right?" asked Alistair.

Shiro, Angelo and Jessica nodded their little heads.

"Oh. I was kind of hoping that I was just hearing things," said Alistair. Alistair ran to the direction the sound was coming from. What the four travelers saw almost made the bile rise in their throats; the Templar knight, Greg was beating up his teammate, Henry, in a rage with a wooden staff to do it. Henry was just a bloody pulp on the ground, screaming for all he was worth. He was in complete agony.

"Shut the hell up!" Greg snarled. He raised his staff, ready to strike at Henry with all his strength. That was when someone finally did something to stop this; Shiro raced at Greg as fast as he could, knocking the behemoth off balance. Angelo, Alistair and Jessica ran towards the scene when both boys fell to the ground. They kneeled right next to Henry when they were close enough. The beaten, abused boy completely helplessness; his eyes were closed while he held his stomach while he was coughing up blood.

"Are you okay?" asked Alistair. The young man held the bleeding boy up on his knees. He turned to Jessica and Angelo. "Will one of you please pass me an herb that I can give to him?"

Jessica looked at the beaten boy with a mixture of outrage, anger and revulsion. The scene was enough to make the bile rise in the young girl's throat and throw up all the contents in her stomach. For her it was like time had stopped and she couldn't move or do anything at all. Her mind was racing a mile a minute with different thoughts. _'Oh my goddess, how can a person do this to someone else? This Greg can't be human… he's a monster! He can't get away with this! I can't act like a helpless little girl now! I need to snap out of this stupor and help Henry the best way I know how!'_

Angelo approached Alistair and Henry. Angelo had a medicinal herb in his hand. Angelo kneeled down across from Alistair and handed him the herb. Alistair put the herb in Henry's mouth for him to chew. When the abused boy was done eating his medicine, is injuries began to heal; some wounds were closing and some bones were healing. Angelo used his proficiently honed magical abilities to scan Henry's body for other serious injuries. When he was done he turned to Jessica.

"Jessica, can you please get my bag?" Angelo asked. "I have some clean cloth I can use to tie around his injuries."

Jessica nodded her head in understanding. She hastily did as Angelo asked and gave him his bag. Jessica watched as Angelo and Alistair bandaged the poor, unconscious soul. "Will he be alright?" Jessica asked Angelo.

Both boys turned their attention to the young, red headed mage. Alistair nodded his head. "Yes he'll be just fine. All he needs is rest little sister," Alistair said reassuringly._ 'But Greg should still pay for what he did to this boy! He can't just get away with this!'_

"Mind your own damn business and get out of my way!" Said boy screamed. Shiro was blocking Greg from getting to Henry.

"No," Shiro said bravely.

Greg began to tremble with anger. If looks could kill then Shiro would have already died a slow and excruciatingly, painful death. "GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!" Greg yelled. "THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU!"

"Now that's where you're sadly mistaken," Shiro retorted. "When someone is getting hurt then I make it my business. I hate when bullies pick on those they deem are weaker than them. Greg if you want to beat someone up, then try and beat me up." As if to emphasize his point, Shiro brought out his sword and prepared himself for a fight.

Greg was a dilemma at this very moment. As much as he wanted to beat the little midget bloody, he knew that if he fought Shiro, he wouldn't win the race. _'Great! Now how am I supposed to get away from so that I can win the race?'_ Greg looked around the area in thought, until he saw something valuable. It took Greg a moment to finally see them because they were behind a nearby boulder. They were five monsters that lived in the area. A plan began to form in Greg's mind as soon as his eyes locked onto the monsters._ 'Ha ha ha! This plan is so perfect! It's a shame that I didn't think of this earlier,'_ Greg thought. _'Once that little pipsqueak realizes what happened it will be too late and I would've already made it to the Port.'_ Greg smirked boastfully he took out his cherub bow.

Shiro took out his sword and took his fighting stance. He noticed the smirk plastered on Greg's disgusting face and it makes him edgy. _'That smirk doesn't mean anything good; he's definitely planning something sneaky,'_ Shiro thought. _'But what exactly is he planning? I'll have to end this before I find out. Henry needs to get to a healer.'_ Shiro raised his sword high and charged at Greg with a mighty battle cry. Greg just stood and held his bow, poised to fire. Greg shot one of his arrows when Shiro got a little closer. Luckily, Shiro was still far enough away from Greg that he managed to dodge the arrow without receiving a single scratch. Shiro came in front of Greg and he had raised his sword, ready to deliver the finishing blow, but something happened.

A powerful roar could be heard during the battle and brought the battle to a halt. Everyone -except Greg and the injured Henry- turned to the direction the eruptible sound. There, near the boulder, stood a horde of monsters from the area. The monsters seemed really infuriated about something and in their anger, they charged recklessly towards the group of warriors. Shiro soon realized that the cause the monster's anger must've been the arrow that Greg had shot. _'Damn! Greg shouldn't have used that stupid bow and arrow, _Greg thought in anger. _'Wait… the fault doesn't just fall to Greg. He was trying to hit me after all. It's not his fault that I moved.'_ Shiro turned away from the monsters to warn the others of the upcoming danger. "Everyone has to RUN!" Shiro exclaimed. "There are monsters charging at us!"

As soon as the group heard Shiro's disastrous warning, Alistair carried the still injured, unconscious Henry and the group to run. Alistair turned his attention towards Shiro, who was still gawking at the monsters; as soon as he looked in the direction of the younger boy he realized that something wasn't quite right, but at the moment he had more pressing matters to worry about. _'I'll worry about it when there AREN'T monsters chasing us!' _Alistair thought. _'Right now we just have to get out of here alive!'_ "Shiro!" Alistair called. "Let's flee! We have to get out of here!"

Shiro turned to the older boy and reluctantly nodded his head. _'This is a battle for another day,'_ Shiro thought to himself. _'Right now, Henry's too injured to fight and doesn't have the strength to wait for real help while we're battling these monsters. With Alistair, Jessica and Angelo taking care of Henry, they can't fight and even though I am strong, I can't defeat all of these monsters by myself… we'll have to run.'_ Shiro ran to safety. Even though he knew that he couldn't handle all of those monsters by himself, Shiro's pride as a warrior still demanded that he stand and fight this battle, even if it was his last. Shiro subliminally slowed down a few times. He was straggling behind and the monsters were catching up to him. When he noticed this, Shiro quickly turned 180 degrees so that he was facing the monsters and quickly cast a sizz spell on the ground. The little flames quickly caught on the grass, becoming a fortification of fire that defended the adventures from the monsters that were advancing on them ardently.

Only when the travels put a great distance between them and the monsters did they stop running. Jessica collapsed on the ground and all of them were breathing heavily. Shiro took this time to look as each and every person that was there at this very moment.

"Where is Greg? Shiro asked. He resumed his search for afore the mentioned Templar Knight. This unanswered question caused the other adventures to begin their search for Greg but none could find him. It was like he disappeared.

"Do you think he got caught by the monsters?" Jessica apprehensively asked.

Angelo shook his head. "No," Angelo answered. "I think that he probably disappeared while we were preoccupied with outrunning the monsters."

"What are you saying?" Jessica asked in amazement.

"Angelo is saying that Greg deserted us while we were dealing with the monsters," Alistair explained to his little sister. He picked up the comatose Henry "And to tell you the truth, it's not too arduous for me to believe." Shiro and Angelo nodded in agreement.

"But what makes you think that?" Jessica asked in confusion. _'What makes all of them believe that Greg would do something that despicable?'_

"It has something to do with when I was fighting Greg," Shiro explained. "At that moment when he shot his bow and arrow, he was unusually smug. I knew that he had something planned and I think that I figured out what that plan was."

"Are you actually saying that whatever Greg was planning has anything to do with those monsters? Jessica asked.

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Shiro said. "I think that Greg wasn't trying to hit me, that's why he shot too early and I was able to dodge it. I think that he was trying to get the monsters' attention so that while we were so busy with them, he was able to escape us."

"And he did that so that he could finish our little race." Angelo finished. Angelo was reeling with anger. _'The only reason he didn't just shoot Shiro himself was because he wouldn't be able to explain why he shot him with an arrow.'_

"WHAT THE HELL?" Jessica screamed in anger. Now she finally twigged exactly what Greg had done. "We can't let him get away with that!"

"My sentiments exactly," Angelo said. "If we still propose to win the race then I suggest that we go after Greg now." Both Shiro and Alistair nodded their heads in agreement. The troupe began to move as hastily as humanly possible.

Greg was laughing for all his worth. _'My planned worked,'_ Greg thought. _'Since those fools have fallen into my trap, I still have a chance at winning this race. Muhahaha!'_ Greg just ran on top of a hill and now he was able to perceive Port Prospect. _'Now that I'm finally there, there's no way that those fools can catch up to me! All I have to do is walk a few more steps and I'm at the Port.'_ Greg gave one last gleeful guffaw before he continued on his way. Greg never suspected that as soon as he made it down that hill, he would finally be receiving his comeuppance.

"We're almost there," Angelo said. Angelo took one medicinal herb out of his pack and gave it to Alistair. Alistair fed the herb to Henry, instantaneously healing some of Henry's injuries. The boy's eyes flutter open until they were finally opened and he was awake at last.

"Ah, so you're awake now," Alistair whispered to the recently awakened boy. Henry looked at every single one of the travelers in mystification and groaned. He attempted to get onto his feet but he faltered. Alistair caught him as soon as he did, this caused the travelers to discontinue their stride and they all looked at Henry.

"Hey you shouldn't push yourself just yet," Alistair advised. "You were hurt pretty badly."

"Where am I?" Henry asked. Where's Greg?"

"Don't worry Henry," Shiro said soothingly. "He's gone now."

Henry began to shake with relief. "Is that really true? He's not here anymore?" It was almost as if he was asking these questions to himself instead of anyone in particular. _'Thank the goddess,'_ thought Henry. _'He beat me up almost all the time since I was bullied into becoming his partner. This would've never happened if I was as brave as Shiro. Then that bully would just leave me alone.' _

"It's alright you know," Angelo said. "There's no reason to cry anymore. So wipe your tears away."

"What are you talking about?" Henry asked. Henry rubbed his hand against his face and sure enough, found that there were indeed tears. Henry began to blush red from embarrassment.

Jessica seemed to understand. Jessica walked up to Henry and gave him a hug. Henry was so startled by the gesture that he really didn't know what to do. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about," she said. "If I had to deal with someone as dreadful as Greg, I'd cry too." Henry really didn't know how to react or what to say. He did the only thing that came naturally, and that was leaning his head on the girl's shoulder and bawling for all his worth. She rubbed his back and whispered soothing nothings into his ear. "It's okay, everything will be okay," Jessica said. "Greg will get what's coming to him, I can promise you that."

Once Henry had finished crying, he picked up his head from Jessica's shoulders and wiped his tears away. "Thank you," he whispered. "All of you for helping me."

"Think nothing of it," Angelo said. "That Greg is a piece of work. He's always picking on those that are weaker than him and he enjoys doing it. Hell, he's even picked on me and I did nothing about it sometimes." The Templar knight offered his hand to Henry. The soldier was hesitant at first but he soon grabbed the offered hand and pulled himself up.

Not long after that, the group began their walk. Henry was walking, slowly, between Alistair and Jessica in the front. Both Angelo and Shiro stayed in the back of the group, talking. "Was what you said to Henry really true?" Shiro asked.

"What? The part where I said that Greg bullied me and I did nothing about it?" Angelo asked. Shiro nodded his head. Angelo sighed and he said nothing for a few moments.

"Well…," Angelo whispered. "In the Abbey, Greg would pick on me almost every day. I think that I was his favorite punching bag."

"And you never fought back against him?" asked Shiro in amazement.

"I thought about it one time," explained Angelo. "But after one particular beating, I was quickly discouraged from doing so. I once told an adult, assuming that he would be able to do something to stop it."

"What happened?" Shiro asked.

"Nothing good that's for sure," Angelo answered. "As soon as Greg found what I've done, he not only beat me up but he made me do one of the most awkward and embarrassing things that I've ever done." Angelo became a dark red from his cheeks to neck and kept his gaze low, as if the grass had become the most important thing in the universe. This only demonstrated how ashamed he was of his clandestine.

"You don't have tell me about it if you don't want to." Shiro put a hand on Angelo's shoulder to soothe him. "But there is something that I want to know."

Angelo brought his gaze up from the ground and looked at the boy he considered his friend. "Alright, what is it that you want to know?"

"Why did you help me when Greg was beating me up?" Shiro asked. "If you were so afraid before that you couldn't defend yourself, what made you help me; a person that you had never met before?"

Angelo seemed to really consider the question. _'Now that I think about it, why did I help Shiro? Not that I regret that decision, he's my best friend, but I didn't have any reason to help him then so why did I?'_ Angelo gazed at Shiro who was patiently awaiting an answer. "I don't… really know," answered Angelo. "All I know is, I had this feeling that I was supposed to help you. There was something about you I guess. I don't quite understand it myself."

"I see," Shiro responded. "I'm glad that you did help me."Shiro gave Angelo a pat on the back. Shiro flashed Angelo one of his sincerest smiles.

Angelo, in sequence with Shiro, smiled as well. "I'm glad I helped you too."

"That's good to know," Shiro said. "Now catch up to Greg so that we can pay him back for all the things that he's ever done to us."

Angelo chuckled at this. "Let's do it."

The two friends laughed together and caught up with the other trekkers in their team.

Twig: In the U.K this means to understand or realize something.


	6. Chapter 6

"How are they still able to follow me?" Greg asked himself. He continued to walk towards Port Prospect. "What more do I have to do to get rid of them?" It was obvious that Greg was having a bad day. His plan to use a group of monsters to slow down the travelers didn't seem to have any affect on them. Even now, as Greg turned his head to look behind himself, he could see that the group of travelers was slowly gaining on him. Hell, at this point they were close enough that he could even _hear_ them.

"There he is!" said a young boy. Greg remembered the boy as his former partner. _'What was his name?'_ thought Greg, _'I know that it started with an H... oh whatever if it was important then I would've remembered it.'_ Greg turned his back and

"I see him too Henry but how are we going to catch up to him? He still has the lead," Alistair pointed out. "Does anyone have an idea?"

"I do." Before anyone could stop him, Angelo aimed his arrow and released it from his bow. It landed right in front of Greg, causing him to stop and just stand.

"Angelo! Are you insane?" asked a surprised Jessica.

"What?" Angelo said. "I got him to stop didn't I? Now come on before he starts to move again.

"Don't move!" Angelo screamed. He, followed by the party ran to Greg as fast as he could.

Greg, growling and red with anger, turned around to face that party. _'Damn it all! I can't believe they're this close to me now. In only a few moments I would've been at the Port! Damn my luck!'_ "What do you want?"

"What do we want?" Angelo asked. "What do we want? You bullied your teammate, left him and us so that we would be killed by monsters and now you want to know what _**we**_ want? Now that's hilarious."

"I'll tell you what we want. We want to stop you from ever doing this again!" The party surrounded Greg. He tried to find a way to escape but there was none. There were no monsters that would distract the party from their target and other way to get rid of them. Greg had no choice but to fight them. Greg took a stance and held his rapier, readying himself for the battle.

"I'd like to see you try you fools!" Greg gave an evil chuckle. _'I might as well take out the weakest one.'_ He raised his rapier and charged as fast as he could at Jessica. Jessica, so surprised she was by the charge, stood frozen at the spot. The red headed girl was saved by a flash of white hair when Angelo rushed in front of her. Angelo raised his sword in defense. A metal _cling_ could be heard when the two swords clashed. Both Templar knight seemed to be stuck in a power struggle with each other; which Greg seemed to have the upper hand. Something had to be done, quickly, before Angelo lost this struggle.

That is why Shiro fed Munchie piece of cheese. _'I'm not going to let you hurt MY friends!'_ Shiro thought as the mouse breathe fire like a dragon. The flames reached their target and Greg was set aflame. Greg's Templar uniform was being consumed by the flames. He quickly used the Swoosh spell to summon a powerful wind that put out the flames.

"Are you alright?" Shiro ran to both Angelo and Jessica. As soon as Greg backed away, Angelo dropped to the ground with exhaustion and breathes heavily with exhaustion. Angelo wiped the beads of sweat from his face before answering.

"I'm fine." Angelo turned around so that he was facing Jessica. "What about you? Are you alright?"

Jessica nodded her head. "You saved me."

"Don't worry about it." Angelo got back up from the ground and almost collapsed. Shiro caught him before that happened. "Are you sure that you're alright Angelo?"

"Yes I'm fine," Angelo smiled reassuringly. "I'm just tired that's all; Greg is bigger and stronger than I am."

"Good thing that we're faster right?" Shiro said. The dark haired boy turned his attention to Jessica. "Would you please stay with Henry while we fight Greg?"

The girl shook her head furiously. "No! I want to help you fight that bully! It's not fair!"

"Jessica do as I ask," Shiro pleaded. "Greg was charging for you; not Angelo. He knew that he was physically stronger than you so he tried to take care of you first."

Steam began to come out off Jessica's ears. The girl was red faced with anger. "So now you're trying to say that I'm weaker than all of you? I thought you were better than that Shiro!"

Shiro just shook his own head. "That's not what I'm saying."

"Then what are you saying?"  
"I'm saying that Greg is stronger than you. Let's be honest – if that attack had connected with you, you would've been down for the count. Think about how hard a time Angelo had blocking Greg's attack. I'm just saying that brute force isn't your strong suite. But you are very good with magic. Angelo and I will handle this fight; if for some reason we don't win then you and Alistair can still help us. You can also protect Henry if Greg decides to do something as underhanded as to attack him. Until then please stay on the sidelines with Henry and Alistair."

Jessica opened her mouth to say something else but when she caught sight of Shiro's eyes she knew that he was serious. She instead nodded her head and moved to sit next to her brother Alistair and Henry.

"Ah! What's the matter you shrimp? Having a lover's spat?" Greg asked mockingly. "If you are- please leave it for _after_ you lose this battle." He seemed to finally have recovered from the burns now and he clothing was charred and singed. "Are you finally ready to fight now you losers?"

Shiro turned his head so that he could face Alistair.

Alistair must have already known what the young boy was about to say because he said: "Don't worry Shiro. I won't jump until I'm sure that you both lost this fight."

Smiling in satisfaction, Shiro turned around to face Greg again. "It's you who's going to lose Greg," the smaller boy said. Shiro took out his steel broad sword and Angelo still on to his bow; both boys were ready to put an end to this once and for all. Shiro made the first move and charged Greg. Greg, who was prepared for the attack, attempted to cast Dazzle, and illusion spell, on Shiro but his concentration was broken by an arrow that almost hit him, causing him to be vulnerable to Shiro's attack.

Shiro's attack hit with its target and Greg fell to the ground but quickly recovered, he charged past Shiro to get to Angelo, the shooter of the arrow, and slammed his elbow into the other boy's gut. Angelo gasped from the pain and fell to his knees. Greg, smirking, pulled out his rapier again and swung it down on Angelo. Angelo saw the rapier coming down on him and he brought his bow up to meet the attack and it defends him from it but Greg's rapier still managed to cut him on one of his hands. Again, the two boys were caught in another struggle similar to the first one and like before Angelo seemed to be slowly losing. Shiro then chose at that moment to save Angelo by swinging his sword into Greg's side, not hard enough to seriously injure him but enough to cause him to drop on the ground in pain. Angelo then gave a sigh of relief. _'That was a close one,'_ he thought. Shiro then offered Angelo his hand and the pale haired boy used it to hoist himself up from the ground.

"Are you alright?" Shiro asked Angelo.

The other boy nodded. "I'm alright but that was too close a call."

Shiro laughed. "Tell me about it." Shiro looked to see that Greg was still ground, writhing on the ground. "I guess we won this battle."

It was at that moment- as if to prove Shiro wrong- that Greg slowly got up from the ground. The movement put a lot of strain on his body and the action was causing him to sweat. "T-that's… what… you think," said the exhausted boy. The boy again raised his sword and stumbled.

Both Shiro and Angelo took their stance, readying themselves for an attack, but it never came. Greg's eyes went up with in his eye socket. The only thing that could be seen was the whites of his eyes. Then the bigger boy began to fall backward and fell on the ground with a thud. Angelo and Shiro relaxed and put their weapons away. The battle was finally over. They walked over to the now unconscious Greg and found that the bigger boy was breathing softly, as if in a peaceful slumber.

"You guys did it you won!" Jessica came running towards them. Alastair and Henry just opted for walking over. The oldest boy of the group, Alistair looked down at Greg before picking him up and hoisting over his shoulders. "Alistair what are you doing?" Jessica asked.

"I'm carrying him," Alistair explained. "He's injured and unconscious. We can't leave him like this or the monsters in the area will attack. He will be at their mercy."

_'Good. I don't have a problem with that,'_ thought Jessica. _'That is what he did to us not once but twice.'_ But Jessica didn't voice out these opinions. She knew that her brother would not take her opinion very well and she didn't want to disappoint him so all she did was nod her head in understanding.

When Henry saw Alistair carry the unconscious boy up, he began to have thoughts that were along the same lines as Jessica's.

Once Alistair had a good hold on Greg, The group, Shiro, Angelo, Jessica, Alistair, Henry all continued on their journey to Port Prospect. They finally made it to the Port a few moments later and met by none other than Captain Tobin of the Trodain Guards and Captain Marcello of the Templar Knights.

"Well, well it looks like two teams were the first to make it to Port Prospect," said Captain Tobin. He had noticed that there was a red headed boy around his age and a red headed girl traveling with the two teams and also that the red headed boy was carrying Greg.

"Actually Captain Tobin and Captain Marcello, I don't think that Greg and I deserve to win this competition," Henry said. "You see-."

"There you are! Jessica! Alistair! Both of you come over here this instant!" It was Jessica and Alistair's mother, Mrs. Albert calling them.

"We're coming mom!" Jessica said, exasperated. She turned to the rest of the group. "See you later on the ship guys. Bye. " She both left the group waving their hands as they walk towards their mother. Alistair left after putting Greg gently down on the floor.

Once the two red heads were out of site, Henry turned towards the two Captains again. "As I was saying before," said Henry. While Henry was trying to give this explanation, Greg began to wake up and he was able to hear everything Henry was going to say. "When we started this competition, Greg bullied me into becoming his partner and while on the journey to Port Prospect he would punch and kick me around and when he saw that Shiro and Angelo were gaining on us he would do plan it so they were attacked by monsters. He did that twice. I not any better because I allowed him to do those things so I feel that if you are going to punish him then you should punish me as well."

"He's lying! He's nothing but a liar! Nothing of what he said was true!" Greg exclaimed angrily as he stood up. _'How dare that pathetic twerp tell the Captains those things in front of me? I will make him and the rest of them pay real soon, if it's the last thing I do!'_

"Really so he's being deceitful is he?" Marcello asked. "Why would he lie against his own partner? What is his motive?"

"Those two," Greg said while pointing his finger at both Shiro and Angelo, "are probably making tell these stories! I swear none of them are true. They're the ones who decided to both fight and gang up on me. My partner didn't even help me when I during that battle. Look at what they did to me." Greg began to show both Captains the damage he had sustained during the battle, including his burn marks.

"Is that true?" Captain Tobin narrowed his eyes as he looked at Shiro.

"Part of it is Captain, but I swear Greg isn't telling you the whole truth," Shiro said. He noticed that both Captains were beginning to get angry. "Everything Henry said was the truth but he didn't tell you that at one point, after Greg had beat him badly, Greg then abandoned him in during one of the monster attacks. That's why Henry was traveling with us and then we did fight him because Angelo and I didn't want to see him get away with this."

"Shiro and Henry are telling the truth; Greg is the one who is lying," Angelo said. "Captain Marcello, even you know that Greg has a long history of bullying and abusing others. These deeds are not beyond him."

Captain Tobin turned to Captain Marcello and looked at him with one eyebrow raised, as if he was confused by the young Templar's statement. Captain Marcello was burning up with anger and outrage. One could see the vein that was popping out of his head. "Greg I will personally be dealing with you later." Marcello whispered in a dangerously low voice.

At that very moment, Greg's face had turned as white as a sheet, as if he was staring at the Grim Reaper himself. "But Captain-,"

"GET OUT OF MY SIGHT RIGHT NOW! GET ON THE SHIP AND WAIT! I WILL _DEFINITELY_ BE DEALING WITH YOU LATER!" yelled Marcello. Without further argument Greg walked, no _ran_, to the ship. Henry, Shiro and Angelo inwardly cringed. All three boys were beginning to feel sorry for Greg. They all jumped when Captain Marcello spoke again.

"Now to deal with you three," Marcello said. He seemed to have calmed his anger for the most part, though there still seemed to be a hint of it in his voice. "Congratulations are definitely in order for Shiro and Angelo for they are the ones who won this competition. Now go on the ship. It has already reached the port and we will later give you your prizes."

"As for Henry," Captain Tobin said. Henry began to tense. "Don't worry you are not in trouble. I am actually very proud of you. You had the chance to be dishonest and take credit of winning but instead you chose honesty and left yourself open to punishment. That takes a lot of character that I wished everyone had and for that both Captain Marcello and myself. Is that alright Captain?" At that Marcello nodded his and seemed to be at ease.

"Yes I can agree with that. I wish all my Knights were like that. Now off with the three of you. Captain Tobin and I still have things to do before we depart."

The boys, not needing to be told twice, made their way to the ship and made themselves at home in one of the rooms that had three beds.

"They were wrong, I was a coward. Why would anyone want to be like me?" Henry fought hard to hold in his tears. _'Great. Now I can add cry baby to the list as well.'_ At that moment, Henry began to feel a hand gently rubbing his back, trying it's best to give comfort to the crying boy.

"There's nothing to be ashamed about," Shiro answered. "Your actions were anything but cowardly. When you stood up for us in front of the Captains, it was extremely brave." Angelo nodded his head in agreement.

"But I let Greg bully me and beat me near death," said Henry. "I couldn't fight him- not like you guys could."

"That's nothing to be ashamed of." Angelo's were glue to the floor as he spoke again. "Shiro and I didn't always start fighting Greg. There are times when we let him bully and abuse us… without doing a thing to fight back. Courage has nothing to with being able to fight, the fact that you were able to stand up to him in front of the Captains shows that you have courage. Even though Greg could retaliate against you still told the truth. It makes you stronger than Greg, who picks on others that are weaker than him. It makes you stronger than even me." Angelo raised his eyes so that he had eye contact with Henry. "You are a brave person and don't you forget it. Now enough of this talk, we should rest fore we have a long day ahead of us, who knows what type of adventure this will turn out to be?"

All three boys nodded in agreement and fell asleep in their beds. All three boys managed to fall asleep with matching smiles on their faces; ready to face any new adventures when they awoke again.

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Sorry that it's been a while since I last updated but I hope that you like this new chapter. I'm thinking about making Henry one of the main characters in this story, can you please review on this story so I know what you think about that idea? Thanks- Ima.


	7. Chapter 7

King Clavius stood on the deck of _The Winged Angel_, watching the sun rose over the sea. _'This is truly is a wondrous sight.'_ Clavius; King of Argonia had decided that he and his young son, Prince Charmless, would catch the earliest ship leaving from Baccarat and travel to Savealla Cathedral just so they could see some new sites. King Clavius planned on it being a wonderful trip. _'Or it could be a wonderful trip of Charmless would learn to enjoy it.'_ The thought caused Clavius to sigh. Charmless was his only son as well as next in line for the Argonian throne and apparently that fact was giving him a big ego.

Anyone who ever had the "pleasure" of meeting the Prince all described him in the exact same way: over indulged, spoiled, arrogant, cowardly and anything else that weren't good qualities for a future King. At the rate Charmless was going, he would never be ready for his Argonian trial. These terrible thoughts about his son caused him to sigh again. _'It is my fault Charmless is like this,'_ Clavius thought to himself. _'If I had not coddled him so much, especially after his mother's death…'_

While Clavius was busy thinking these depressing thoughts, Shiro, Angelo and Henry came running onto the deck. The three boys have never been at sea before. They were so excited about watching the view from the ship's railing and in all of the excitement, Shiro tripped and fell on the floor in front of King Clavius' feet.

Clavius, after noticing the boy's fall, bent over to help him up and offered him a hand. "Are you alright?"

Shiro grabbed the offered hand after he smiled at Clavius in gratitude. "I'm fine," Shiro answered reassuringly. "Thank you for the help."

"You're welcome-," Clavius took a look at the boy's face for the first time and his eyes widened in surprise. He gasped. _'It can't be…'_ "Eltrio?" The boy looked confused, but otherwise didn't respond to the name. _'And why should he?'_ King Clavius thought bitterly to himself. _'The boy isn't Eltrio. He's too young. My older brother disappeared before he was even born… It can't be him…'_ All of these facts were true; there was no way this boy was his brother; the brother who forfeited his claim to the throne and disappeared. It hurt, looking at this boy and remembering the brother that left without even looking back. This was not Eltio… but something didn't feel right. There was no way this boy could look so much like his brother without some sort of explanation…

"Um… Excuse me sir…"

Clavius shook his head to clear his mind and only then realized that the boy had gotten up from the floor and he was now looking very concerned. Clavius quickly noticed that he was still holding the boy's hand. He quickly released the young stranger's hand and stuttered a quick apology. "Oh… I apologize…"

"That's okay," Shiro said. "Thank you for helping me up. Are you alright?"

Clavius waved off the boy's concern. "Oh it's nothing little boy… It's nothing really. I just thought that you were someone I used to know." _'Maybe he knows Eltrio. There two people looking almost identical cannot just be a coincidence. I must find out more.'_ "So have you ever been to Argonia?"

Shiro thought about the answer for a long while before answering. "I don't think so."

"You don't think so?" Clavius repeated. "You don't sound too sure of the answer."

"Well… I'm not," Shiro explained. "I don't remember being anywhere else besides Trodain."

"So you are from Trodain?" Clavius asked.

The boy nodded his head. "Yes. It is my home." After that Shiro heard someone calling his name. Both Shiro and Clavius turned in the direction that the voice came from. Once he saw the person who called him, Shiro began to remember who he came onto the deck in the first place. He turned to the King who nodded in understanding.

"It was nice to meet you young man," said the Argonian King, "but you should join your friends. Maybe we will meet again."

Shiro smiled. "I would like that sir. Bye." Shiro jogged to meet up with his friends, Angelo and Henry.

"Finally!" Angelo loudly exclaimed. 'What was taking so long over there?"

"Wasn't it obvious Angelo?" Henry asked, fixing his playful glare on the light- haired boy. "Shiro tripped and that man helped him."

"Well I saw_ that_ part." Angelo uttered rudely, rolling his eyes to emphasize his point. "But it shouldn't have taken that long if that was the case." Angelo repeated his question. "Now what happened over there?"

Shiro shrugged. "Nothing really." Shiro then told his friends how the man had helped him up and then mistook him for someone else. "It was just really a big misunderstanding."

"But what about those questions he asked you?" Henry said, holding his chin a thoughtful manner. "It sounds like he may have some of his own doubts."

Shiro visage soon became incredulous. "Are you saying that he may still think I'm this Eltrio person?"

Henry quickly shook his head. "No, no. I think he realizes that you can't be the person he thought you were," Henry paused before continuing. "I guess what I'm trying to say is..."

"Come out and say it Henry," Angelo said. "We won't laugh at you or anything."

Henry nodded his head before continuing. "What I'm trying to say is that... I have this feeling that maybe you're somehow connected to this person. He may think that you Shiro somehow know this Etrio person."

Shiro and Angelo both became thoughtful. All three boys looked at each other. It was a long moment before Angelo spoke.

"Shiro is it possible that you know any of these people?"

Shiro shrugged in response. "Anything is possible," Shiro answered uncertainly. "But I can't really be sure that I've met any of them. I still don't remember anything before I came to Trodain."

Henry and Angelo nodded their heads in understanding. Angelo has known that fact ever since Shiro mentioned his mysterious past and Henry has lived in Trodain all his life and there is no citizen of the kingdom that _didn't_ know about Shiro.

In the first few days after Shiro showed up in Trodain, King Trode had thought that Shiro may have lived near the kingdom that had simply been separated from his parents. He sent his messengers all around to spread the word about the missing, boy suffering from amnesia, but no matter what the king tried, no one ever came to claim Shiro. The boy had been living in the castle ever since.

"Well I think we can conclude that you probably have never met that man until today," Angelo said reasonably.

"What makes you say that Angelo?"

"It's simple. If you had met that man before then I'm pretty sure that _he_ would've recognized you," Angelo answered. "The fact he was even asking those questions makes me think that he might not know you at all. He may just think that you know Eltrio in some sort of way."

Shiro nodded his head in understanding. "That makes sense... But who is Eltrio? Who is the man that helped me up? Who are these people?"

"Those are very good questions," Henry said. "I'm not sure what kind of information we can find out about Eltrio but maybe we can learn something about the man that helped you up. It should be easy since he's obviously a passenger so it should be easy to learn something about him."

Angelo and Shiro nodded in agreement. "Then we should split up and ask some of the passengers if they might know who he is."

That was exactly what they did. They walked up to anyone they could find and asked if they knew anything about the stranger. They did this multiple times but no matter how many people they asked it was always the same answer; no one knew who he was.

"This is all completely superfluous!" Angelo yelled in annoyance. "How is it that NO ONE on this ship has any idea who that man is?"

Shiro shook his head. "We didn't ask every passenger who he is," Shiro gently pointed out. "There still may be people who know who he is."

"Well that may very well be true," Henry said, "but I'm too tired to keep searching. I think we should get something to eat and then go back to our cabin and rest." The boy's let out a silent sigh of relief when rest was mentioned. _'FINALLY!'_ was the thought on their minds. They couldn't wait to put their hopeless search to rest, but unfortunately that wasn't meant to be. At that moment, just as they would have to turn at a corner, all three boys ended up bumping into an older man who was the only one who fell on the floor.

He was a stout, balding, little man wearing an expensive velvet suit. Eight and the other two boys held their hands to help the man up. "We're sorry for bumping into you," Eight said. "Are you alright?"

The man accepted the helping hand and hoisted himself up. "I'm fine thank you-."

"Will you hurry up?" A voice said rudely. It came from a pudgy blond, young boy that the trio had just noticed standing there. He looked towards the scene with his nose in the air. "Stop wasting my time with these disgusting commoners. We must find my father immediately."

As soon as the words "disgusting commoners" left the boy's mouth, Angelo was ready to charge. His eyes flashed with righteous anger and his fist clenched; ready for a fight. Blood would've been spilt on the floor if Shiro had not been holding the knight back.

"Let go of me!" Angelo said. "Let me go! I'm going to teach that preening little snob a lesson!"

"Angelo calm down." Shiro and Henry struggled to keep away from the other boy. "It's not worth it. Snobs like that are never worth it... Please just let it be; just calm down."

Angelo took a few deep breaths to rid himself of his anger. It took a few moments for Angelo to compose himself and by that time, the rude boy and the man had left them alone in an awkward silence as Angelo calmed himself. It was a while before anyone found anything to say.

"I'm hungry," Henry said. "Let's get something to eat. It's probably lunch time now." The boys then walked to the dining hall, hoping that their stomachs would be filled with lunch.

"Ah good afternoon boys," Captain Tobin greeted. Captain Marcello, who was sitting next to Tobin, just watched the boys with a look of indifference. "Glad to see that you've made it for lunch. Now have a seat somewhere." In the dining hall, there were still many vacant tables, with plates, utensils and menus set up on them. The boys sat at one of the tables in the middle of the room.

"Wow... look at the number of people on this ship...," Henry said in awe. Many of the ship's passengers were coming in hordes, rushing to the closest tables. Some were people that the boys knew, like Princess Medea sitting with her father, King Trodain.

"I've never seen this many people in one place," Angelo said in awe. Eight nodded his head in agreement. "Even Trodain castle hasn't held this many people," Eight muttered in thought.

"Hey!"

The boys turned to looked towards the person that called them. Jessica and Alistair walked over to the trio's table and took their seats.

"Hi," Jessica greeted. "Haven't seen you in guys in a while. How've you been?"

"Very well," Angelo answered for the other boys. He grabbed onto one of Jessica's hands and brought it to his young lips. "And you?"

Jessica giggled. The other boys that had yet to say anything rolled their eyes, all though, _'Why am I NOT surprised?'_ Alistair decided to interrupted this little "flirt fest".

"So... how have the rest have you been?"

"We've been okay," Henry answered. While he spoke a waiter came to set rolls and different entries and waited to take their orders. "But it's been a really tiring day?"

They all gave their orders and their menus to the waiter and he left the group alone to tallk. Alistair was confused by the answer. "How so?"

Shiro, Angelo and Henry told Alistair and Jessica the story about the mystery man and their quest to find out his identity. During that time their food arrived and they quietly ate.

Jessica cut a piece of steak and popped it into her mouth, chewing slowly, considering. "It's so odd... how could it be that no one knows who he is?"

"Maybe someone _does_ know him," Alistair said thoughtfully. He looked at the boys before asking his question. "Are you sure that you asked all the guests here?"

Shiro shook his head. "We may have asked most of the people here," he said slowly, "but I know that we didn't ask everyone. We didn't ask that other man we bumped into."

"Or that snob that was causing trouble," Angelo added.

"Maybe they know who he is," Henry said, looking around at the tables, looking for the people. "I see them. They're sitting with King Trode and Princess Medea... Oh goddess..."

"What's the matter Henry?" Angelo asked. Everyone's attention was on Henry, who was still looking towards the table where King Trode and Princess Medea were sitting, wondering what was the matter.

Henry didn't turn to look at any of his friends. "Look over there," Henry said. Pointing his finger at the other table. They all did what he said, but only two others could understand what was so important about what they were seeing.

At the other table, King Trode sat between two people. His daughter, Princess Medea, who sat at his left. On his right, sat a man. A man with blonde hair and wearing a green hat on his head.

"That's him," Shiro whispered. His eyes never left that man. "That's the man we've been looking for all day."

"Wow..." Jessica said. "I know who he is..."


End file.
